Walking Dead 1. Prologue

******It's my first TWD fic and I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Prologue**

Now that the Governor was away and the Woodbury people were at the prison, the priorities of Rick's group had changed. They had to make some modifications in the prison. They didn't have enough space for everyone so they had to clear one more cellblock. Rick talked about it with Hershel, Daryl, Karen and Tyreese, and decided that it could be a good thing that each group had their own space. That would give them time to learn to live with each other.

There weren't many walkers left in the part of the building they decided to use, but the cells and the main floor were covered with corpses and blood. So Rick asked Glenn and Maggie to clean and secure the new place. He also asked Carl, but the kid was sulking and didn't want to help; he preferred staying outside with Michonne to make sure there weren't any holes in the fence surrounding the prison. After he made sure the woman agreed to take Carl with her, Rick decided to let him do what he wanted; he didn't have the time to deal with it at that moment.

While Beth was taking care of Judith, Carol and Hershel helped the new-comers to settle in. Except for Tyreese, Karen, Sasha and Robbie, the new group was formed of old people, women with young children, and a few kids. They all looked lost and scared. With the way the Governor massacred most of his own people after attacking the prison the day before, it was understandable.

Daryl wasn't totally against Rick's idea to bring more people with them, but he wasn't feeling really comfortable being surrounded by so many new faces. So, when the sheriff demanded that he gohe go out and check check that the forest around the prison was clear, he was grateful. Daryl knew that Rick wanted to be sure the Governor hadn't left them any bad surprises, and he also guessed it was Rick's way of giving him some much needed space. After all the months together, they began to know each other quite well and Rick knew Daryl was feeling uneasy with all the new people. So, with his crossbow on his back, a few arrows and his knife in his belt, the redneck walked to the entrance where Michonne was waiting for him. When he was out, she closed and locked the fence behind him.

When the sun was down, Daryl came back inside the security of the fences. He hadn't found anything suspicious, but he was sure that the Governor would come back soon enough to take his revenge; he didn't look like the guy who would abandon them without giving a good fight first

* * *

After about two weeks, everything was doing pretty well. The new people were settled into their cellblock and the atmosphere between the two groups was okay, except a few small disagreements that were quickly fixed. Daryl was hunting almost every day, which was keeping him away from the newcomers as well as Carol who began to miss his presence. Even Rick thought that the hunter should be around more. But he also knew that they needed to eat and having as much fresh meat as possible was good for the health of the group.

"Hey, how was your day?" Carol asked one afternoon, when Daryl came back from his hunt a little early and walked directly to his cell.

"Pfft, it wasn't bad, I guess not much game today, didn't really find much," he answered, putting his crossbow on the floor and sitting on his bed.

"Don't worry," Carol began sitting next to him, "There's still some deer meat left from the one you got three days ago."

"So many mouths to feed…" he noted, yawning.

"Yea, but you could take a day off; you look exhausted!" she remarked, patting his knee.

When he didn't flinch, Carol smiled. Daryl had changed so much since he and Merle had joined the group. In the beginning, the Dixon brothers had kept to themselves, not really interacting with the rest of the group. But when Merle left while they were in Atlanta, Daryl began to let the other people around him. Carol was the person who he seemed to be the most comfortable with, but she had needed a lot of patience to get him to trust her. She was now able to touch him without seeing him tense and she even had some deep discussions with him. With every minute spent with him, her affection for him grew slowly and she even began to think that she felt more than just affection for him. Carol tried to keep those feelings down, because she didn't want to scare Daryl; she didn't want him to run away from her. He was so uncomfortable with everything related with love and feelings.

"Things need to be done," he said, shrugging.

"Of course, but there are other people who can take care of it…"

"Ain't any other hunter…"

"Right," Carol agreed, knowing she wouldn't win that one. "But at least, try to get some rest," she added standing up. "The last thing we need is our hunter being too worn out…"

A thin smile appeared on Daryl's lips when he looked at her and nodded.

* * *

Over the course of the next few days, Daryl spent more time at the prison. Rick arranged a new schedule where the hunter had watches during the day, giving him time to rest during the night. But of course, he was still hunting every two or three days to make sure they had enough food.

During the same time, Glenn had announced that he had asked Maggie to marry him. They didn't really want a true wedding, but Beth, Carol, Karen, Sasha and a few other women from Woodbury's side, made a statement that they should have a least a ceremony.

"We don't have a lot to celebrate these days," Sasha said after the news had been announced... "It's going to give us a reason to forget what's going on around us…"

Everyone thought that she was right, so they decided to plan something that looked as much as possible like a real wedding. The women made lists of what they would need and Tyreese, Rick and Karen made a few runs to gather it all.

Daryl was glad he had to be on watch or out to hunt, because he wasn't really into those kinds of events. But even if he didn't have any interests, almost every evening he was listening to Carol who was keeping him updated with the advancements they were making with their project.

A few days before the wedding, Glenn asked Daryl if he could come with him in town; he wanted to find something special for Maggie. First, he had talked about it with Rick to have his permission. The sheriff agreed and suggested that he take along Daryl. He knew the hunter would be glad to stay away from the prison for a while and he thought it would be safer for Glenn to not be by himself.

First, Daryl thought that they both used his motorcycle, but a few members of the group learned they were going to make a run and gave them a list to things to find. Still in need for a ride, Daryl took his bike and Glenn the green Hyundai, so they would be able to bring back more things with them.

They stopped in two small towns but didn't find anything interesting. So they kept going and drove until they found a bigger city about two hours later. As soon as they arrived and began to walk around, Daryl thought something was weird; there were no walkers. In the other towns they had to kill several of them, but this place seemed to be deserted. Thinking more about it, Daryl increased his vigilance; he didn't want to have a bad surprise.

"Something's wrong here," the hunter noted, stopping a few meters away from a big convenience store.

"What? I don't see anything special…" Glenn said, looking around.

"That's the problem; ain't any walkers around…"

"Right…" the Korean agreed after a few seconds.

"We should hurry and get the hell out of here before it gets dark…" Daryl proposed, pushing the door of the shop opened, his crossbow in front of him.

Glenn nodded and followed the other man, a knife and his gun in hands.

Fortunately, nothing went wrong. There was no one inside the store, dead or alive, and there was still so much stuff left on the shelves. While Glenn was looking around for something special, Daryl found the kids and babies' department. Beth had given him a list of things that Judith needed and since Glenn seemed to be occupied with finding a gift for Maggie, he decided to take care of it himself. He took a shopping cart and put baby's clothes, blankets, diapers, bottles and other stuff in it. When he was done, he went to the pharmacy area, but didn't have as much luck and almost every shelf was empty. But he did find some useful things on the floor like a bottle of pain killers, two tubes of toothpaste, toothbrushes, tampons that a few women had on their list, and a full box of soap bars. Daryl kept going like this until he had gathered as many things as possible. After a while, Glenn joined him and looked at the cart.

"Tampons and lace panties…Really Dixon!?" Glenn said, taking red lady underwear from the cart and moving it a few inches in front of Daryl's face.

"Shut up…" the hunter grunted, blushing. He already had been uncomfortable when he picked up the women panties; he didn't need Glenn to be making jokes about it too. "They're on the list," he added, like he needed to explain himself.

Laughing, Glenn put the panties back in the cart and took something from the pocket of his pants.

"Look what I found for Maggie," he said showing a small plastic box. He opened it and took a silver chain in his hand and gave it to Daryl.

The other man looked at it; there was a small angel pendant hanging from the chain.

"What do you think?" Glenn asked, taking the jewel and putting it back in the box.

"Don't know…Guess that's what women like…" Daryl said, shrugging.

"You should find something for Carol…" the Korean proposed.

"Why would I give something to her?" he asked, beginning to feel uncomfortable again. He didn't like the direction their conversation was heading.

"Well…to show her that you care…"

"Don't need too…"

"Why? Everyone like receiving gift…"

"No…not me," Daryl said, pushing the cart in front of him and hoping that Glenn would drop the subject. "And she probably knows already…"

"So, you really care about her…" Glenn said, smiling.

"Didn't say that…It's the same for everyone in the group…"

"Yea…right…" Glenn added, shaking his head. Daryl Dixon was really not the type of guy with who he could talk about love and women.

Glad that the smaller man had stopped bothering him about Carol, Daryl picked up two bags from the sports department and after throwing one at Glenn, he began filling his with all the stuff they had found. When they were done, they got out of the store and started to walk back to the car and the motorcycle. But about halfway there, Daryl caught a movement between cars parked in the middle of the road. So he stopped his pace and waited a moment.

"What's going on?" Glenn asked, looking around.

But when nothing else happened, Daryl shook his head and started walking again. "It was probably nothing," he thought, tightening his grip on his crossbow. When they arrived at the car, they put the bags in the back and got ready to drive back to the prison.

About two hours later, Daryl pulled over and got down from his motorcycle.

"What's going on? Are you out of gas?" Glenn asked out of the car's window.

"Naw…just need to take a piss…" the hunter explained, walking on the side of the road. "Just go, I'll join you in a few…"

"You're sure?" the Korean demanded, looking around to make sure there was no threat.

"Yea, just go…"

Glenn nodded and left slowly, looking back in the mirror. He didn't really like the idea of leaving Daryl alone, but he knew the man was used to being by himself. And they hadn't seen anything dangerous except a few walkers. He knew Daryl enough to know that if there were too many of them, he would just take his motorcycle and leave.

When Daryl was done, he took a bottle of juice he'd found on the floor of the shop and drank it. After about a minute, he got back on the road. He couldn't see Glenn's car yet, but he wasn't worried and he would join him soon enough. He was thinking about increasing his speed when the motorcycle began to shake. Leaning on his side to look at the front and back tires, Daryl stopped looking in front of him for a few seconds and didn't notice that he had changed his direction a bit. When he looked back in front of him, it was too late; there was a big fallen tree in the middle of the road and several wrecked cars on the right that he couldn't avoid and he was riding too fast to slow down in time. So the motorcycle hit the tree and Daryl was throw from it, projected in front and fell on the other side of the tree.

"Arhhh…" he groaned when his body hit the ground.

He felt a sharp pain in his skull and something pushing against his left side and his leg. He looked over and realised that he was stabbed just over his hip by a piece of metal probably coming from one of the broken cars. For a second, the situation made him remember of when he was stabbed by his own arrow while he was searching for Sophia. But he stopped thinking about it when he noticed the pool of blood growing around him; it wasn't looking good. Daryl tried to move but the pain in his head and his side got worse and he began to see a kind of fog forming in front of his eyes.

He was trying to stay conscious when he heard a car approaching. "Glenn figured out that I wasn't behind him…thank god…" he thought, relaxing a bit. But when the vehicle was closer, the noise made by it was louder than the one usually made by the Hyundai. Daryl tried to turn his head to the side to have a better view, but he was slowly passing out, so he wasn't able to see well. He noticed people getting out of the car, or rather a truck, and walking toward him.

"Look who's there," a familiar male voice said. "He doesn't look like he's in good shape…"

"Who is it?" a female asked, getting closer.

"An old friend…"

"What are we going to do with him?" another man demanded. "Let him die here…"

"No, we should take him with us; he will want to decide what to do with him," the first man suggested.

"Fine…But we have to stabilise him first," the woman said, keeling next to him. "We don't want him to die and turn in the truck…"

When Daryl felt a hand on his arm, he tried to move away. The small movement was too much for him, and the pain became unbearable.

"Shhhh…It's okay, we're going to help you…" the woman said again with a gentle voice, making her sound like she really cared.

It was the last thing Daryl heard before everything went black.


	2. Chapter 1

**It's my first TWD fic and I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 1**

Glenn was driving for a few minutes, always looking in the mirror but there was still no sign of Daryl. To give Daryl a chance to catch up, he decided to pull over and wait. After about fifteen minutes, Glenn's anxiety peaked and he turned around and drove back to the spot where he had last seen Daryl. Suddenly, about one mile away, he saw a dark truck turning on a perpendicular road and disappearing behind the trees... Glenn increased his speed; there was someone else alive in the area and he wanted to try to get closer. The plan was working until he passed in front of a fallen tree he had avoided the first time and saw a motorcycle on the ground. Instantly he abandoned his pursuit of the other vehicle and pulled over. He walked closer and found Daryl's crossbow beside a car. He knelt down to take it and realized there was blood a few meters away.

"Daryl!" he yelled, looking around. "DARYL!" he added louder, feeling the fear rising inside of him. He didn't care about the walkers who could hear him; he just wanted to find his friend.

Glenn looked closer at the blood and discovered there was a piece of fabric folded next to it. He grabbed it and realised it was a bandage soaked with blood. He kept looking for a while, but when he didn't find anything else and figured that Daryl wasn't there anymore, he took the crossbow and rushed back to his car. He didn't know who was in the dark truck, but he was sure these people had something to do with the fact that Daryl was missing and maybe hurt. Glenn drove back to the prison as fast as possible; he had to warn Rick and the rest of the group.

* * *

Daryl was slowly waking up. He could feel a pressure in his head and a pain that radiated out from a wound on his left side. His throat was dry and he was cold. When he opened his eyes, the light was too bright so he had to close them again He tried to move his right arm so he could cover his face with his hand but he wasn't able to move.

"Mmmm," he moaned when the pain increased.

Even though he was feeling really weak, Daryl tried to move his arms again, but they were still trapped on something soft. At this moment, he realised he was lying in a bed and had a sheet on him. So despite the light, he opened his eyes and after about a minute, he was able to look around him. Like he had thought, he was lying in a single bed and was in a small room. There was no window and only one door which was half opened. He took a look beside the bed and saw an IV bag with a line that seemed to be connected to him. He moved his left arm and could feel a needle into the top of his hand. He didn't know where he was and why he was there so he began to struggle.

"Shhh…You better stop moving like that," a woman warned, running inside the room. "It's just going to get worse," she added, removing the sheet that was covering the man's torso. When she did, Daryl began to panic: he didn't know where he was and he didn't recognize the woman that was touching him. An especially large jolt of adrenaline rushed through him when he realised that his wrists were tied to the bed with straps that were normally used to immobilise people in hospitals.

"Don't fucking touch me," he hissed, struggling even more. He wanted to sound scary but it was more like a whisper.

"Please, Daryl, you need to calm down…" the woman tried to assure him with a gentle voice. "I won't hurt you…"

"How do you know my name? And why am I tied up?" he asked angrily. "And where the fuck are we?"

Suddenly, someone appeared in the door frame. Daryl turned his head and gaped; he couldn't believe who was in front of him.

"Hello Daryl," the Governor said, smiling. "Welcome to my new home," he added walking closer.

The hunter was so surprised that he was speechless; he was just looking at the other man with daggers.

"Why am I here?" Daryl finally asked after a few seconds. He began to get really cold now that he wasn't covered with the sheet anymore. He was also feeling that his entire body was sore.

"You had an accident with your bike…" Philip began, talking like they were both friends. "Martinez, Davis and Samantha here, found you laying on the ground in a pool of blood. They chose to bring you with them so I can decide what to do with you," he said, smiling again. "And because I'm a good man, I decided to make sure you have the best care. You've been out for two days…"

Slowly, Daryl remembered the store, his motorcycle, the tree and his accident. He also remembered a vehicle and people talking around him, and Glenn. Where was his friend? Did he come back for him? Did they kill him? Did he drive back to the prison?

"Where's Glenn?" Daryl demanded, worried about the Korean. He realised that his voice was getting weaker and that he just wanted to close his eyes and sleep.

"I have no idea," the Governor said, looking at the woman named Samantha.

"He was alone when we found him," she explained, taking a stethoscope from a desk. "But there was an Asian with him when we first spotted him at the town."

"So it was them that he saw when they got out of the convenience store," Daryl thought, taking a better look at the woman. She was in hers mid-twenties, had long blond hair tied up in a braid and big blue eyes. She didn't seem like the type of person who would work for a man like the Governor.

"How is he?" Philip asked like if Daryl wasn't there anymore.

"I think he's going to be okay for now," Samantha said, rubbing the metal base of the stethoscope with the palm of her hand to warm it. "But he's not out of danger yet. He lost a good amount of blood and the concussion is worrying me a bit. And I'm not even talking about the possible infection; we're running out of meds…" she added, putting the stethoscope in her ears and placing the other end on Daryl's chest. "I'm going to take a look at your wounds and then I will cover you back," she said when she felt him shivering.

Daryl didn't have the strength to reply, so he just nodded.

"Arghhhhhhh," he groaned when she touched his left side.

"Sorry," she apologised, letting go of his torso to remove the sheet from his leg and uncover another wound.

Daryl saw that he was wearing only a pair of black boxers and was suddenly glad that he didn't decide to go commando the day of the accident. When Samantha was done examining his leg, she did like she said and put the sheet back on him. She even when to grab another blanket from one of the drawers of the desk to lay on him as well.

"There, that's going to keep you warm," she said, smiling. "If you're still cold, just tell me, I'm going to find another one."

"Can you untie me?" Daryl asked with a small voice, when Samantha was looking at his eyes with a small light.

"Nope," the Governor said. "I don't trust you enough Dixon…and I don't want you to run away from me again…"

"Can I have a least something for the pain?" he asked again, weakly.

"No…To be honest with you, I enjoy seeing you suffer…" Philip confessed with a malicious smile on his face.

"So why don't you kill me and safe yourself the trouble?" Daryl demanded, when the woman move away from the bed.

"Because your life has more value than your death…" the Governor explained, smiling again when he grabbed the blanket and moved it to be sure that Daryl's shoulders were well covered. "Rick came back to Woodbury to save your ass; I'm sure he will do it again. But this time, I'm going to be ready for him and your little friends…"

On this, Philip left the room without another word and was followed by Samantha who shut the door behind her.

Closing his eyes, Daryl was totally despondent; he was hurt, weak and being kept hostage by the Governor. His worst enemy wanted to use him to trap Rick and kill him, and probably the rest of the group as well. Daryl began to drift into an uneasy sleep thinking he'd rather of died on the road than be responsible for the death of the people he had come to call his family.

* * *

When Glenn returned to the prison, everyone noticed that Daryl was missing. So the Korean didn't wait to explain what happened and what he saw on the road; Daryl's bike, the blood and the truck.

Carol dropped on the floor in tears. She couldn't live thinking that Daryl was maybe hurt or dead somewhere. Maggie and Beth had taken her to her cell while the others planned what to do next.

Rick had paced the court yard for a while. Daryl was like his second in command but he was also his friend. He had no idea how he would keep going without him. He didn't know if he was still alive, but they had to find out.

Glenn took Rick and Tyreese and drove back to the place where he had found Daryl's crossbow. They had searched the area for several hours and went for a ride by the road taken by the dark truck, but they didn't find anything that could help them. Since they didn't know who was driving the mysterious vehicle, they didn't want to go further without being fully prepared. Glenn had insisted that they bring back Daryl's bike to the prison. The motorcycle was still working; the front was damaged, but nothing that a few tools couldn't fix.

It had been two days since Daryl went missing and Rick, Michonne, Glenn, Maggie, Carl, Hershel, Tyreese, Karen, Sasha and Robbie were in the common area and were discussing what they should do.

"What are we going to do next?" Carl asked, having enough of his father's plans. "We can't let Daryl die….

"We don't even know if he's still alive," Sasha noted, getting a few 'shut up' like faces coming from the others. "He could have become a walker already…"

"Nothing is telling us that he's dead," Rick reminded them before they started arguing.

"I'm still sure the Governor is behind this," Glenn said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Well, if you're right, Daryl is probably dead," insisted Karen . Karen. "He killed his own people, so I'm sure he would kill one of yours without hesitation."

"Us, Karen, one of 'us'," Rick corrected. "You're part of this group now."

Everyone nodded and stayed silent for a while.

"He's keeping him as leverage," Michonne said, breaking the silence.

"And how do you know that?" Sasha asked, suspicious.

"I kind of figured out that bastard," the black woman began. "There something he wants more than anything, I'm sure…See me dead because I killed his already dead daughter and took one of his eyes…And he wants to take revenge over Rick and the group because he failed when he tried to take the prison and couldn't kill us. He's probably keeping Daryl; he knows we'll do everything we can to bring him back."

"Maybe Michonne is right, if we consider that the Governor really has Daryl," Hershel said. "But we have to make sure that no one else took him. I mean, he obviously crashed his bike, so he was probably injured. Someone might have seen him and decided to help him. And Glenn came back too late to see who it was…"

"So, you think it's my fault!?" Glenn guessed angrily.

"No, Glenn…not at all…" Hershel explained, trying to clarify what he said. "I was just showing the facts. I don't blame you at all…Daryl is the one who asked you to leave without him."

"But it's not his fault either," Glenn said again.

"Stop it…It's nobody's fault," Rick stated before their discussion went out of control. "Arguing against each other won't help Daryl."

"Rick's right!"

Everyone went silence; Carol had entered the room, her arms on her chest and was accusing them with her eyes.

"While all of you are fighting to know who's right or wrong, Daryl is probably out there injured or kept against his will. If he was okay, he would have come back already. So just stop talking and go find him. If you're not able to do that, tell me…I will go find him myself."

At these words, Carol left the room and walked back into the cellblock. Everyone looked at each other and knew she was right.

* * *

Daryl woke up when he felt a sharp pain on his left side. He opened his eyes and saw Samantha sitting on a chair next to his bed. She had gloves and was lightly touching his wound.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you or wake you up," she said, smiling. "I just want to make sure that there's no infection. Good news, you seem fine for now," she added, covering the wound with a clean bandage and putting back the sheet over the injured man. "How are you feeling?"

"Like you care…" Daryl grumbled, harshly. He tried to move but quickly remembered that he was tied up.

"In fact, I do…I wouldn't be here taking care of you if I didn't…" the woman said, removing her gloves and throwing them in a bin filled with blood soaked bandages. "So, how do you feel?"

"Like shit…"

"Can you be more specific?"

"Why? There's nothing you can do even if I'm in pain…" Daryl said, coughing lightly.

"You should be thirsty…Do you want some water?" Samantha asked, standing up.

Daryl nodded. The blond woman left the room and came back two minutes later with a glass of water.

"There…Let me help you," she said, putting a hand behind the man's head and rearranging the pillows so he could be half sit. She brought the glass to Daryl's lips and helped him drink slowly. "And take two of these," she added, opening a small bottle of pills and removing two of them.

"What is it?"

"Pain killers…"

"I thought I couldn't have anything against the pain…"

"Philip decided that, not me…" the woman explained, with another smile. "And I'm the doctor in this place, so I'm the one who decides what to do with my patient." She slid the pills between Daryl's lips and made him drink again.

"I don't understand why you're working for that bastard," Daryl said, fighting back the sleep again. "You seem to care too much for people for that…"

"Philip's not a bastard; he's a really good man…"

"Well, it seems like you don't know him as well as I do…" he said, cutting her off.

"Oh, I know him really well…I've known him my whole life…"

"Really!?"

"Of course…Philip is my uncle…"


	3. Chapter 2

******I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 2**

"Were you at Woodbury?" Daryl asked, curious. He didn't remember seeing her when he was there and had to fight with Merle.

"Not for a while…" Samantha said putting the glass on a small table next to the bed. She moved the pillows to allow Daryl to lay back down and then sighed. "It's a long story…"

"Like you can see, I ain't really busy right now…" he noted, moving his head to feel more comfortable. But the movement made him dizzy and he winced.

"Yea, but you need to rest…" she said, noticing Daryl's discomfort. "I'll come back later," she added, looking at the IV bag and heading toward the door. "If you need anything, just ask…"

She left the room and closed the door behind her. By the sound Daryl heard, she also locked it. "Like I was able to go somewhere…" he thought, sighing. He wasn't feeling the effects of the pills yet, so he still had a big headache and even if the wound on his leg wasn't really bothering him, the one over his hip was still painful.

Closing his eyes, Daryl was wondering if the Governor had informed Rick about his capture. He was so angry with himself to be so weak. He had to get some rest if he wanted to get his strength back as soon as possible, to be able to prevent what the Governor had in mind. He just hoped he would have enough time…

* * *

Rick and the group had decided to find out where the road took by the truck was leading. So three days after Daryl disappeared, Michonne, Glenn, and Tyreese left and drove for about four hours until they pulled over on the side of the road. Half a mile away, they had spotted a few houses and warehouses in a large open field surrounded by high walls and fences. They got out of the car and grabbed their guns before taking a trail in the forest. After about thirty minutes and a few walkers down, they stopped when they could have a good view of the place but still staying out of sight in the forest. They could count about ten armed men walking around the area and several vehicles.

"It was the dark truck, the one near the grey warehouse," Glenn pointed when he saw the truck he had seen three days earlier.

"Good, but we still don't know who these people are…" Tyreese reminded them.

"Well, if they are with the Governor, it means that the bastard was really quick with finding new reinforcements…" Michonne said, taking the binoculars and trying to distinguish someone they knew. "And they are well armed," she added when she had a closer view.

"Well, since it's the same truck I saw, I'm pretty sure that Daryl is in there…" Glenn supposed, reaching for the binoculars.

"What are we going to do now?" Michonne asked, sitting on the ground and leaning her back against a tree. "We can't just walk over there, knock and ask them if they have seen Daryl."

"Fuck!"

"What's going on Glenn?" Tyreese asked. Clearly something had startled Glenn and that was something they should all be concerned about.

"Forget the idea of walking up there asking about Daryl," he said, shaking his head.

"Why?"

"I just saw Martinez coming out of a warehouse and entering into the blue house," Glenn explained, giving the binoculars to Tyreese. "It means the Governor is not far away…"

"So, if Daryl's not dead yet, he surely has a bad time right now…" Michonne guessed, sighing.

* * *

Daryl was woken up by the feel of his blood pulsing in his head. He had a big headache since the accident, but now, the pain was worse. He opened his eyes and realized that someone was sitting on the chair next to the bed.

"Good afternoon, Dixon," a familiar voice said. "Man, don't you look like shit…"

Daryl blinked a few times and as soon as his view was clear, he recognised the man beside him; it was Martinez.

"What the fuck do you want?" he said, closing back his eyes; he couldn't tolerate the brightness of the light. And the other man's presence wasn't helping his nerves.

"Just checking on you…"

"Mmmm…" Daryl moaned. His headache was becoming unbearable; he really needed to take pain killers.

"What's wrong?" Martinez asked, sounding worried.

"My head…" he murmured, struggling to free his hands.

"I'll go find someone…" the Hispanic man said, standing up and running out of the room.

Adding to the headache, Daryl began to feel dizzy again. He wasn't comfortable laying on his back and he was fighting against his bonds to be able to move. But the more he was moving, the more the pain in his head and in his side was increasing.

"What's wrong?" Samantha asked Martinez while entering the room.

"Don't know…He said something about his head…"

"Daryl…please, you need to calm down…" she insisted, putting a hand on his forehead.

"It hurts…give me something…" Daryl pleaded, opening his eyes and searching for the woman.

"I'll give you pills, but you need to stop moving…" she said, removing the sheet to look at his wounds.

"Fuck…I think I'm gonna be sick…" he groaned, feeling something was wrong with his stomach.

"Caesar, untie the other side," Samantha demanded, trying to untie the strap on Daryl's left hand as soon as possible.

"But Philip said…"

"I don't care what he said…Just do it…"

Sighing, Martinez untied Daryl's right hand.

"Daryl, we are going to turn you on your right side, okay…" the woman began, moving one hand behind his head and the other one on his lower back. "Caesar, help me. Would you…"

A bit uncomfortable, Martinez took Daryl's left arm and pulled him toward him.

"Arghhh…" the redneck whined when the IV line didn't follow as fast as his hand.

When Samantha was sure her patient was stable and the IV back in place, she went to Martinez's side with a bin in her hand.

"Everything's going to be okay…" she assured Daryl gently, patting his shoulder.

He really hated being touched like that; but there was nothing he could do about it at this moment. Even though he wasn't on his back anymore, Daryl wasn't feeling better at all. He moved his hand to his face and rubbed his eyes. He was still feeling nauseous and the pain in his side had radiated to his leg as well. When he felt that he was going to be sick, he reached for the bin that Samantha was keeping next to him. He bent over and vomited what looked like bile; he had nothing left in his stomach. When he was done, the woman had to help lay Daryl back on his side. Daryl thought that once he would have thrown up what was bothering his stomach, he would feel better; but it wasn't the case.

"M'not feeling good…" he managed to stay, shivering. "My head…"

"No fever…" Samantha noted, running a hand over Daryl's forehead and neck. "He lost too much blood and he's a little dehydrated," she added more to herself. "It looks like the IV isn't enough…"

At these words, Daryl saw a red mist covering his eyes that was getting darker until everything went black.

"Damn it…He passed out…" Samantha said, pushing Daryl on his back and checking his pulse. She took a small light from her pocket and looked into the man's eyes.

"Is he going to be okay?" Martinez asked, slightly concerned.

"Why? I thought you didn't care about what happens to him," the woman demanded absently, still examining her patient.

"Well…I…I don't…Just want to know…You know…So I can tell your uncle…" Martinez babbled. "Hum…Maybe we should put the straps back around his wrists…"

"I don't think he's going to go somewhere else soon," Samantha said, looking at the Hispanic man. "Just tell Philip that I need to give him another transfusion…"

"He wouldn't want us to run out of blood for Daryl Dixon…"

"Well, if I don't give him more blood, I can't assure him that I'm going to be able to keep him alive long enough to have his plan done," the woman explained, crossing her arms over her chest

Martinez nodded and left the room. Samantha looked at Daryl and sighed; there weren't a lot of things she could do to keep him alive. But even if Philip had told her that Daryl was a bad man, she had doubts about it. Looking at him, she couldn't help herself; she had to do everything she could to save him.

* * *

When Glenn, Tyreese and Michonne returned to the prison, they were despondent. They had walked around the perimeter of the Governor's camp, but couldn't see any way in without being seen. They needed a plan.

After dinner, they were standing in the yard with Rick, Maggie and Hershel. Glenn had drawn a map of the camp with the location of the different buildings. Since the place was in the middle of a field, with a distance of about one hundred meters between the fences and the forest, the biggest problem was to find a way in.

"I think it's too risky," Maggie said, looking at the map. "The Governor is probably waiting for us."

"She's right," Rick agreed, sighing. "But we need to find Daryl…to bring him back…"

"I know that you don't want to hear that, but we have to keep in mind that he could be dead…" Tyreese reminded them.

"Maybe, but we can't abandon him without knowing if he's alive or not," Glenn stated. "Daryl would never do that to one of us…Remember with Sophia…"

They stayed silent for a while, thinking about the little girl they had lost. Tyreese and Michonne didn't know her, but they had lost love ones too, so they understood how they were feeling.

"Okay…so if we can't get into the camp by ourselves, maybe we can find a way to have them taking us in…" Rick suggested after a few minutes.

"And how do you want to do that?" Hershel asked, wondering what the sheriff had in mind.

"I'm sure they need to get out sometimes…So first, we have to find where they are going for their runs…"

* * *

Daryl was waking up slowly. He didn't know for how long he had been out, but when he opened his eyes, he wasn't feeling the pain anymore. He was a bit groggy and weak, but the headache was gone as was the pain coming from his wounds. He looked around the room and when a lock of his hair fell over his eye, he instinctively reached to move it away of his sight. He was a little perplexed when he remarked that he wasn't tied up to the bed anymore. Thinking that it could be his chance to get out of this place, he tried to sit up. But he realised quickly that he didn't have enough strength to do it by himself. "Fuck…" he murmured, laying back down. After a while, he heard someone unlocking the door. "I wouldn't have gone really far…" he thought, sighing.

"I'm glad you're awake," Samantha said entering the room. "How are you feeling?"

Knowing that she was questioning him because she cared, Daryl thought he should be nicer with her. Obviously, she wasn't responsible for his capture and she wasn't the one who decided what would happen with him; the Governor was.

"Better, I guess…The pain is gone…" he told her, keeping his eyes on her when she got closer. "What did you give me?"

"Morphine…and a blood transfusion," the woman said, looking at the IV line. "Philip is really mad at me right now…," she added, laughing lightly.

"Ain't a surprise…"

"Well, I can understand his reasons…He doesn't want us to run out of meds and blood for an enemy…If something happens to one of us and there's nothing left, people are going to be really upset," Samantha explained, removing the sheet from Daryl's chest and looking at his wounds.

"You don't think he should have let me die…"

"No, I'm a doctor and I wouldn't let that happen…Even if he said that you're a terrorist and killed a lot of the people back in Woodbury…"

"Yea, right," Daryl hissed, laughing sarcastically. "It's bull shit!"

"Maybe…"

"And you realise that he's keeping me to have his little revenge on my friends…And when he's going to have all of them killed, he's going to kill me as well…"

"I'm not going to accuse someone without proof…And this goes for my uncle as well as you," Samantha explained, reaching for the strap under the bed and wrapping it around Daryl's left wrist.

"Don't…" he demanded, moving his hand away.

"I'm sorry, but I have to," she said trying to get his hand back in the strap. "Please, I don't want to go find Martinez…"

Daryl looked at the blond woman for a moment and when he realized that she was serious, he stopped fighting. When she was done tying him up, she looked at him with sympathy; she obviously didn't like it either.

"I'm leaving for a few hours," she said covering him with the sheet. "I'll be probably back tomorrow…So, someone else is going to take care of you."

"Hope it's not your uncle..."

"I don't know...Do you want something before I leave?"

"Water..." Daryl asked, feeling that his throat was sore and dry.

Samantha nodded and took a glass of water from the small table. She helped him drink half of it before leaving the room.

Feeling his eyelids getting heavy, Daryl hoped that the next time he woke up, he wouldn't have to face the Governor.

* * *

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	4. Chapter 3

**********I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 3**

After Rick had explained his plan to the group, Glenn shared with them that he might have an idea of where the Governor's men were going for supplies. He told them about the place where there were no walkers and that Daryl might have seen something just before they left. So Rick had decided that it could be a good start.

The next morning, Michonne, Glenn, Tyreese and Rick left the prison and drove to the town that Glenn and Daryl had visited a few days before. When they were close enough, they got out of the car and made the last hundred meters by foot to stay unnoticed. Arriving on the main road, they found two walkers freshly killed.

"There…Is that one of the trucks we saw at the Governor's?" Michonne asked, pointing at a vehicle about thirty meters from them.

"Yea…I think so…" Tyreese said, tightening his grip on the gun he was holding.

Suddenly, they heard noises coming from one the buildings. Rick and his group quickly went to hide behind one of the cars abandoned in the middle of the road. After a moment, they spotted a man getting outside with a cartoon box, followed by a blond woman.

"Do you recognise them?'" Rick asked, keeping his eyes on the two strangers and being ready to shoot.

"No…But we can't let them go without knowing if there're with the Governor," Michonne said, ready to make a move.

Glenn and Tyreese nodded and got ready as well.

"Wait, first we just need to be sure how many they are…" Rick said, raising his hand to make them wait.

About two minutes later, another man got out of the same building and locked the door before joining the others near their truck. He was carrying a bag in his hand and a rifle on his back. When the three strangers got inside their vehicle, Rick nodded, giving the signal to go.

Glenn, Michonne, Tyreese and Rick jumped from their hideout and ran to the truck that was slowly heading toward them. Bullets were quickly shot in their direction. But when Glenn's rifle shot one of the tires, the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into another one parked on the side of the street.

"Put down your weapons, or we're gonna shoot you again," Rick ordered, pointing his python toward the truck.

They heard movements and curses before two rifles and a pistol were thrown on the ground.

"Now, slowly, get out of the car," Rick ordered again while they kept their guns pointed toward the truck.

A man with grey hair got out first, his hands over his head, followed by a woman. The other man, an Afro-American, appeared on the other side of the truck and walked to join his friends.

"What do you want?" the grey haired man asked, shifting to stand in front of the woman. "If you want supplies, there are still some left in a few of the buildings…"

"We don't want supplies…" Rick began, walking closer and keeping them at gun point.

"So what do you want? Why did you fire your guns at us?" the black man asked, looking a little scared.

"Are you with the Governor?"

"The Governor? Who's the Governor?" the first man demanded.

"A tall bastard with one eye left,' Michonne said, standing next to Rick.

"M. Blake…Why do you call him 'Governor'?"

"No one is calling him like that anymore," the blond woman said, taking a step forward. "But yes, we are part of Philip's group."

The two men gave an interrogative look at the blonde. Obviously, they didn't know anything about that 'Governor' thing.

"Good, so you are exactly the people we were looking for…" Rick told them, pointing at Tyreese and Glenn to go behind the three strangers. "Let's go find a place inside to talk," he added, walking toward the door of something which looked like a restaurant.

After making sure there were any walkers inside, they entered and sat at a table in the middle of the place. Tyreese stayed at the entrance to keep an eye outside. Michonne and Glenn kept their guns pointed toward the strangers.

"We are looking for someone and we think the Gov… sorry, Philip, may knows where he is," Rick explained when his friends had taken their position.

"Well, if that person is part of our group, we probably know about him or her," the Afro-American said.

"Actually, I don't think Philip will want him in his group…"

"So why do you think he knows where he is?"

"Because we think he had captured him or something."

"No…M. Blake would never take or hurt someone," the grey haired man assured, shaking his head. "I think there's a mistake, Sir…"

"Daryl…You're looking for Daryl?" the woman asked, not looking surprised at all.

"You saw him?" Rick demanded, standing up.

"Of course…"

"Who the fuck are you? You seem to know a lot compare to these two idiots…" Michonne barked, giving a glance at the two men.

"I'm Samantha and I'm a doctor…I'm taking care of your friend…"

* * *

When Daryl opened his eyes, he wasn't surprised to see Martinez sitting in the chair, his feet resting on the end of the bed. He didn't like the man, but he rather preferred having him next to his bed than the Governor.

"Hey…," the Hispanic man said when he realised that Daryl was awake. "Sorry, I didn't know you weren't sleeping anymore," he added, removing his feet from the bed.

"So, Philip didn't want to babysit me himself," the redneck guessed, shifting a little to try to be more comfortable. He could feel pain in his leg, but it was bearable compared to how it felt before Samantha had given him morphine, so he didn't really care.

"He has more important things to do…," Martinez explained, laughing lightly. "And he said that it was better this way…He's scared to lose his control around you and kill you before it's time…"

"Oh…Very thoughtful of him…" Daryl said, beginning to shiver. He remembered that while he was sleeping it was too hot, but now, the room was too cold. But he was too proud to ask the man for another blanket.

"The doc told me to keep an eye on you and make sure you are okay," the man informed him shyly. "So…are you okay?"

"Do I look like am 'okay'?" Daryl asked, shaking his head.

Martinez stopped looking at him and shrugged. Obviously, he didn't like to have to be there.

"I'm fine…But I'm thirsty," he said when he saw the other man looking uncomfortable.

The Hispanic man nodded and took a bottle of water from the top of the desk. He was going to give it to Daryl when he stopped.

"Humm…I'm tied up man, remember!? So you have to help me…" the injured man said, sighing.

Martinez nodded again and raised the bottle to Daryl's lips. When he realised that he might need to raise his head, he stopped a moment.

"Don't worry…" Daryl assured, moving his head without help. He wasn't able to hold it up for a long time, but enough to drink a few mouthfuls of water.

When he was done, Martinez put the bottle back on the desk and walked to the end of the bed.

"So, everything is okay, now?" he asked, looking around.

As soon as Daryl had nodded, the Hispanic man left the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

Sighing, the redneck tried to relax. He was still so tired. But he remembered having weird dreams before he woke up, so maybe he wasn't able to have a good rest. So, turning his head a bit to get more comfy, Daryl fell asleep without really noticing that the sheets were covered with sweat.

* * *

After Samantha had explained how they had found Daryl and how he was, Rick was pacing the room, thinking about what to do. He was glad to know that his friend was alive, but being in the hands of the Governor wasn't good news.

"And how is Philip taking the situation?" the sheriff asked after a while.

"Well…"

"Well what?" he asked again.

"He told Daryl that he's keeping him alive because he knows that you are going to look for him…" Samantha explained, uncomfortable. She didn't like the idea, but since she didn't know what was wrong between his uncle and Daryl's group, she couldn't decide what side was the good one.

"I knew it!" Michonne exclaimed, standing up. "So he's waiting for us."

"Maybe we should keep them and make an exchange with the Governor; his people's life for Daryl's," Glenn proposed.

"I don't think it's going to work…" Rick began, sighing. "Remember, he massacred almost all his people from Woodbury, I don't think he's going to care for three of them."

"What are you talking about"? Samantha asked, furious. "My uncle would never do that…He's a good man…"

"Your uncle, huh?" the sheriff cut her off, raising an eyebrow. "Philip Blake, is your uncle!?"

Rick looked at his group and smiled. "We may have some leverage after all!"

* * *

Daryl was riding his bike for a while now. He could feel arms wrapped around his waist, making him feel so relaxed. Carol always liked to ride with him and to get close to him as much as possible. The hunter would never admit it, but he really liked it as well. They were driving for a few hours now and Daryl began to think that something was weird; the road had no curves. Slowing a little, he could see a thick fog appearing from the forest and covering the side of the road. It wasn't a good idea to stay there; they wouldn't be able to see if there were walkers around them. So Daryl decided to turn back and only after a few minutes, he had the prison in sight already. Shrugging, he drove inside the yard and noted that no one was at the gate. Feeling that something was wrong, he stopped this motorcycle and looked around. He couldn't see anyone around, but only blood everywhere on the walls and the ground. Suddenly, he heard footsteps and looked in front of him; the Governor was there and was smiling at him. So he hurried to grab his crossbow that was hung behind the bike. He was completely caught off guard when instead of seeing Carol he came face to face with a dead Merle.

"Daryl…"

He wanted to get away from him; he knew it wasn't his brother anymore, but a walker. So he tried to get down his bike but he was trapped; he couldn't move.

"Daryl!?"

He could hear his name, but he didn't know where it was coming from. So he closed his eyes to calm himself a moment but when he opened them, he found the Governor above him, his face a few inches from him. He didn't understand what happen after, but he was sweating a lot and felt dizzy. It didn't take long before he blacked out.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 4

**************I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 4**

Rick, Michonne, Glenn, and Tyreese were still inside the restaurant when it started to get dark outside. Samantha, and the two men, Tom the older one, and Jacob a black guy, were still there as well. When they began to get hungry, the blond woman shared with the sheriff that they had food in the truck. So Glenn and Michonne went to grab a carton box from the vehicle while Rick and Tyreese kept an eye on the three strangers. When they came back with the box, they found several cans of soup, beans and fruits inside.

"We need to go back to our place," Tom said, after they were done with their dinner. "Please, let us go…"

"No, we haven't decided what to do with you, yet," Rick replied, walking to the door and looking outside. "And it's too dark to go outside without being in danger."

"He's right," Samantha agreed. "We are not used to walk around during the night. We should wait for tomorrow morning."

Later during the evening everyone began to feel sleepy, so they all chose a place to lie down but without being out of sight. Tyreese, Michonne, and Rick scheduled watches in a way that the three of them could have the rest they needed one after the other.

In the middle of the night, it was Rick's turn. He was focused on a walker moving a few meters away from the restaurant when he heard someone getting closer to him. He turned around and saw Samantha standing behind him.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bother you…I can't sleep," she explained, smiling shyly. "Do you mind if I stay with you?"

Rick showed her the chair in front of him and turned his attention back on the walker.

"I'm sorry about what happened to Daryl," the blonde said, sitting next to the sheriff. "I swear I did everything I could to make him feel better…"

"Well, I guess I'll believe it when he's back with us…Just hoping that your uncle won't decide to kill him before…"

"So, you really think that Philip is a bad man…What did he do to your people to make you hate him that much?" Samantha asked, looking at Rick and studying him.

"He captured, tortured, and killed some of my friends…And he even killed a big part of his group when they failed taking our home. He just shot them and left…" he explained, remembering the event where they saved Karen. "I don't know what he told you, but he's the one who attacked us…The only thing we did was to defend ourselves."

"So…If what you just told me is the truth, it means that Daryl was right…When Philip will get to you and kill your group, he will kill Daryl as well…Even if he's the one who wanted to keep him alive…"

"Yea, I suppose…But your uncle won't catch us and we'll do everything we can to save Daryl," Rick assured, trying to sound confidant. Even if it was what he wanted, he still didn't have a plan to make sure they succeeded.

* * *

Daryl didn't know what was happening to him; he was completely lost. He woke up a few times, not sure if he was still dreaming. He didn't know what was real and what wasn't. He hallucinated that he was at the prison and saw Rick and Carol, he also thought that he was dying somewhere in the woods and Merle was with him. There were also moments where he saw the Governor and Martinez looking at him. Sometimes, he could feel that he was sweating a lot and some other times he was freezing. Sometimes his left leg was hurting him a lot but some other times he felt no pain at all.

At one moment, Daryl felt a wet thing being put on his forehead. He wanted to remove it because it was too cold, but he wasn't able to move his arms. He didn't understand what was wrong with him until he remembered that he was tied up. Or maybe he was dreaming that he was tied up. He heard voices but he was too tired to open his eyes and looked around.

"What do you want to do?" asked a voice that sounded like Martinez.

"Just keep him alive," another voice that sounded like Philip said. "I don't care if he's suffering; I just don't want him to die…yet."

"What am I suppose to do?"

"Find something…Samantha was supposed to be back by now…"

Daryl heard footstep and a door closing. He didn't know if there was still someone in the room with him because he passed out again.

* * *

Rick woke up when a ray of sunlight hit his face. He was sitting in a chair, his head resting on the wall behind him. When he opened his eyes, he could see Michonne on watch in front of the door and the others beginning to stretch. He stood up and walked to the black woman.

"Something interesting?" he asked, looking outside.

"It's pretty calm out there…I saw only two walkers during my whole watch…Did you decide what to do with them?" Michonne questioned, glancing toward the strangers.

"Well, I was thinking we should bring them with us. This place is not safe to do the exchange, and I'm sure that Philip's men know this town better than we do…"

"You want to take them to the prison?" Michonne demanded, obviously thinking that it wasn't a good idea.

"We can't stay here…It's not safe…"

"What's going on?" Glenn asked, walking toward them. "What's the plan?"

"We are returning to the prison and we take them with us." Rick explained. "And we'll send the Governor a message to tell him about his men and his niece."

"Hope he will care about at least one of them…" Tyreese said, joining his friends.

Rick nodded and went to talk to Tom, Jacob, and Samantha. He told them about his decision to bring them at the prison.

"It's not a good idea," the blonde objected, shaking her head and crossing her arms on her chest. "You should let us go…"

"No way…You are the only thing we have against Philip right now if we want to see Daryl alive."

"Maybe, but I need to go back to him. I'm the only one who can take care of him right now, and I've been away for almost two days. A lot could have happened to him during this time."

"You're saying that only to get away so you can tell your uncle about us," Glenn guessed.

"I promise I won't…I'm beginning to understand that there is a big part of his activities that I didn't know…And I think that he may not be the good guy in this story…." Samantha explained, looking a bit disgusted.

Rick looked at her a moment and began to pace the room. He wasn't sure about what to do. He knew that she could be right; Daryl might needed medical care. But he didn't know if he could trust her. And he couldn't keep the men if they released her; the Governor would know that something went wrong.

"Fine…you can go…"

"No, Rick…it's not a good idea," Glenn said, walking in front of the door.

"We have no choice…Daryl may need her…"

"But how are we gonna be able to deal with that bastard now!? Michonne demanded.

"Look…I understand that you don't trust me," Samantha began, calmly. "But we can arrange to meet again in two days. Until then, I'll try to know more about Philip's plan and I'll know if we'll be able to move Daryl soon. Please, you really have to trust me on this…"

Rick took a few minutes to think; it could be a good way to know more about the Governor.

"She's right guys," the sheriff agreed. "But if you turn on us, I swear you're going to pay for it!" he added, looking at Samantha.

So after they had settled everything, Glenn helped the woman, Tom, and Jacob to find a new car. About an hour later, they were gone, leaving Rick, Glenn, Michonne, and Tyreese with only the hope that what they just did was right.

* * *

Daryl was still lost in one of his dreams when a light appeared in his eyes. As soon as he was awake he wanted to go back to sleep. The harsh pain in his leg was back and he was cold and dizzy. He glanced quickly around him and between flashes of light he could distinguish Samantha and Martinez standing next to the bed.

"Daryl…Daryl can you hear me?" Samantha asked.

"Mmmm…" he moaned, turning his head to get the light away from his eyes.

"How long has he been like this?" the woman demanded, removing the light from her patient's eyes and taking the sheet for his body. She sounded very worried.

As soon as the blanket was away, Daryl began to shiver. So he started to struggle lightly to try to get it back on him.

"I don't know…a few hours," Martinez said, shrugging.

"I told you to keep an eye on him…to make sure he was okay…"

"That's what I did…I asked him if he was alright and he said yes…So…I'm sorry but I don't know shit about medical stuff…"

Samantha shook her head and looked at Daryl.

"You need to calm down, alright…," she said, examining the wound over his hip and thinking that it was looking good. "Damn it…" she whispered when she removed the bandage from the leg. "That's what I thought…He has a blood infection…I need antibiotics…Hurry up…"

"But Philip said…"

"I don't care…Just bring the meds, now!" the doctor ordered, impatient. "Daryl, look at me…" she demanded gently, giving his shoulder a light squeeze.

Daryl turned his head and looked at her; she seemed to be worried. Even if his vision was fuzzy, he could see that something was wrong.

"My leg…it hurts…" he complained, his voice weak.

"Yea, I know…You have an infection…I'll give you antibiotics to fix it," she explained, a small smile on her lips. She ran her fingers along his jaw and removed the lock of hair glued to his skin by the sweat.

A few minutes later, she was still running her fingers through his hair when the Governor and Martinez entered into the room.

"What's wrong with him?" Philip asked, walking on the other side of the bed.

"Septicaemia," Samantha began, taking a bottle of pills from Martinez's hand. "He should have taken these hours ago…," she added, shaking her head. "I thought he was keeping an eye on him while I was gone," she said, glancing toward the Hispanic man.

"We were busy with something more important," the Governor explained, not looking worried at all. "How many do you need to give him to keep him alive for a few days?"

"I don't know…But I'm going to give him them to him as long as he's sick…And if we are running out of meds, I'll go find more in town…"

"Yea…Speaking of that, I need to talk to you about your last trip…" Philip said roughly. "Give him what he needs for now…And we'll just have to stop the treatment when I'll decide it's enough…"

Samantha didn't want to argue about this right now, so she just nodded and took two pills from the bottle. She helped Daryl take the pills and gave him a bit of water to swallow. After a few minutes, the redneck was asleep.

"Tom and Jacob told me that you ran into trouble back there," the Governor began while she was taking care of his patient's injured leg. "So you met Rick and a few of his friends…"

The blonde looked at her uncle for a second and nodded, before returning her attention to Daryl.

"You are really lucky that you three made it back alive…"

"Yea, I know…I got really scared when they started to shoot at us without any reason," Samantha said after she had put a clean bandage on the wound. "I'm glad I had been able to convince them to let us go so I can take care of him."

"Did they tell you something about me or their next move?" Philip asked, sitting at the edge of the bed.

"Caesar, I need a bowl full of fresh water, please," she asked, looking at Martinez who seemed to be lost in his thoughts. "They said that they want to see you and your group dead; that you were the bad guy and that they would do everything to save Daryl," Samantha explained absently, checking the man's pulse.

"I was going to send a messenger to the prison to tell them about Dixon, but I guess we'll wait for them now," the Governor said, smiling.

"Philip, I want to be honest with you," the woman began, shyly, stopping what she was doing to look at her uncle. "First, I had doubts about what you told me about them and Daryl. But now that I have met their leader and three of his friends, I know you were right; they should pay for what they did to you and the people in Woodbury."

* * *

**********I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**


	6. Chapter 5

******************I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 5**

He didn't know for how long he was out, but when Daryl woke up, he was feeling better. The pain in his leg had decreased considerably and he wasn't cold anymore. He remembered that he had to swallow some pills a few times and he guessed that had something to do with the fact that he was better. He didn't know what really happened to him but he didn't care either, as long as it was behind him. When Daryl was completely awake he felt the need to stretch but the straps around his wrists didn't allow him to move his arms. He moved his legs and feet a bit, but tried to manage his injured leg. After a moment, he hoped someone would come to check on him soon because he was thirsty, and for the first since the accident, he was hungry. But he didn't know what time it was and if it was the day or the night. He supposed that maybe Samantha, Martinez, the Governor, or the other people were sleeping and meant that no one might be up to check on him anytime soon. Sighing, he let his head sink into the pillow and guessed he could have some more rest.

Daryl was slowly dozing off when he heard the familiar sound of the door being unlocked. He opened his eyes and raised his head to have a better view. He relaxed when he saw Samantha entering the room. He was really not in the mood to face Martinez or the Governor.

"Good afternoon, Daryl," she said, walking next to the bed. "You don't look too pale anymore, how do you feel?"

"Better…I guess I had a bad time…"

"Yea, you can say that," Samantha confirmed, looking at his IV line. "To be honest with you…I was a bit worried…But you're back with us now; that's what matters!"

Daryl nodded and looked at her while she was examining him; she checked his pulse, his eyes, and the wounds over his hip and on his leg. Now that his mind wasn't in the fog anymore, he could say that she looked pretty; but he knew that kind of woman would have never noticed him before the apocalypse and probably even now that the world had changed so much. Even if he thought that she was attractive, he didn't like the way she was touching him; but he knew she was just doing her job, so he tried to relax.

"Can I ask you something?" Samantha asked Daryl when she was done putting clean bandages on his wounds.

"Yea, of course."

"Well, during the last few days, I had time to examine you a lot," she began a bit timidly, covering him with the blanket. "And I kind of notice your scars…What happened? Did someone do this to you?"

At her words, Daryl tensed; he wasn't expecting this. He didn't like being shirtless because he was so ashamed of his scars. Each time he was looking at them or someone was asking about what happened, it made him remember what his dad did to him when he was just a kid. During those years, his father had made sure that the younger Dixon knew that he wasn't worth anything. And it was something he still thought. But slowly, in the time he spent in Rick's group made him realise that he might be wrong. And Carol was always making sure he knew how important he was.

"I'm sorry…I shouldn't ask," Samantha apologised when she saw that he didn't seem to want to talk about it. "You know, you're not the only one wearing signs of the hard time you had in your past," she added, showing him her wrists.

Daryl took a look at them and saw one white thin line on each wrist.

"I was 16," she said, rubbing at one of her wrist and sitting at the end of the bed. "I took a knife from the kitchen and went to hide in my father's stable behind the house. When they found me I was almost dead."

"Why did you do that?"

"My older brother had died in a car accident and I felt like my parents didn't love me as much as they loved him. They were so distant and it made me felt like I wasn't worth it," Samantha explained, wiping a tear running down her cheek. "It took me a while, but I understood that I was wrong; my parents were just hurt and didn't know how to deal with their pain. Philip and Sarah helped me a lot during that hard time; they have always been there for me."

Daryl felt a kind of sympathy for her; he knew how it was to think that people didn't love you when they were supposed to do so.

"I'm sorry," he said to break the silence.

"Don't be…I'm over this now…"

"My father beat me a lot when I was a kid and…and liked it when I was well marked," Daryl confessed with a weak voice. He didn't know where it was coming from; he wasn't used to sharing stories of his past with people.

"I'm sorry," Samantha said, patting his leg over the blanket.

"Don't be…"

The blonde nodded and smiled. She stood up and walked closer to his face. She leaned forward and Daryl noticed that she wasn't smiling anymore.

"I met Rick and three of your friend two days ago when I went for a run in town," she murmured.

"What!?" he exclaimed, trying to sit up.

"Shhhhh…," Samantha warned, glancing at the door. "Keep your voice down…We don't want my uncle or Martinez to know about that."

"Did you tell them about me?" Daryl asked.

"Yea, of course…They were there because they were looking for you. I told them about the accident and your injuries. And about Philip."

"I'm surprised that they let you go, knowing you were with the Governor…"

"I convinced them to let me go. I had to come back here to make sure you were okay. It's a good thing, because you weren't…Thanks for Martinez," she said, rolling her eyes.

"I hope they don't plan to come here…They are going to get themselves killed…"

"I don't know yet…I have to go back in town in two hours."

"Untie me…I'll go with you," Daryl proposed, struggling with his bonds.

"Daryl, I'm sorry, but I can't get you out of here without being caught. And you are not in the state to walk or run away. You need more time to heal."

"I can't wait; your uncle is going to kill me before I'm completely healed…" he said, despondent. He needed to get out of this place.

"He won't," Samantha assured him. "He told me that he wants Rick first. He said that he wants to torture and kill you and Michonne in front of him and kill him after."

"Sounds perfect," Daryl whispered sarcastically, stopping his struggles.

"I'm sorry about that…"

"Well, at least you know that something's wrong him…He's a fucking bastard!"

"I should have believed you in the first place, but he's still my uncle and he had always been a good man. Well, I guess with father's death, followed by Sarah's and Penny's…he became insane…"

"Guess so…"

"I need to leave soon to prepare everything….Do you need something before I go?" Samantha asked, moving away from the bed.

"I'm thirsty and hungry," Daryl said with a shrug.

"Good…Give me a minute…I'll bring you back something."

Samantha left the room and came back a moment later with a bottle of water and a bowl of soup. She gave Daryl antibiotics and pain killers and sat down next to him to help with the soup.

"It's gonna be easier if you untie me…" he said when she approached the spoon near his lips.

"Don't even think about that," the blonde warned a bit playfully. "Now open your mouth."

Even if Daryl hated being fed like this, he cooperated. When he had ate half of the bowl and drink the whole bottle of water, Samantha stood up and head to the door.

"Samantha," Daryl called before she left. "Please…Tell Rick that they don't have to risk their lives for me…"

With a thin smile, she nodded and left the room, closing and locking the door behind her.

* * *

When Rick, Michonne, Glenn, and Tyreese returned to the prison, everyone wanted to know what happened. They told them about the Governor, Samantha, and Daryl. Even if they were relieved to know that their friend was still alive, they knew that he wasn't out of danger, yet.

"So what are we going to do next?" Carol asked, crossing her arms on her chest. "Are you really gonna trust that woman?" she added, harshly. She didn't know why, but she didn't like that Samantha girl. She was sure that she couldn't be trusted.

"We'll meet again in two days," Rick explained. "She said that she's going to try to know more about the Governor's plan and see if she can move Daryl away from the danger."

"Great! So our only hope rests on that stranger…" Carl replied harshly, shaking his head.

"We didn't have other choices," said Glenn. "We didn't know if someone else could take care of Daryl while she was gone."

"Look, at first I thought it was a bad idea," Michonne explained. "But that girl didn't seem to be a liar, even if her uncle is a bastard!"

"What!? That girl is the Governor's niece!?" Sasha exclaimed.

"Listen…" Hershel cut everyone off, stepping in the middle of the circle of people. "I think if Rick made this decision, it was probably because it was the best he could do. He cares about Daryl as much as we all do, so I'm sure he didn't make this choice without thinking about the options. So we should get some rest, think about possible plans and wait until the meeting in two days to know more about Philip's plan."

Knowing that Hershel was right, the group slowly dispersed and people walked to the kitchen or to their cells.

"Thank you," Rick said, putting a hand on the old man's shoulder.

"I just hope you're right about this," Hershel admitted heading for the kitchen.

Rick nodded and looked at the empty room around him. "I hope I'm right, too," he thought, sighing.

* * *

**************I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**


	7. Chapter 6

**********************I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 6**

When Rick, Michonne, Glenn, Tyreese, Maggie, and Hershel arrived for the meeting, Samantha was already there, sitting in the back of a truck .She had a rifle on her back and a metal bar in her hand making her an intimidating force. When they got closer, they saw three walkers with broken skulls lying at her feet.

The group pulled up alongside Samantha and cautiously got out of their cars. "You're alone?" Rick asked, looking around.

"Yea…Martinez wanted to come, but fortunately Philip needed him," Samantha said, jumping down off the truck and joined them. "I told them I needed to go to the pharmacy and I didn't need any help. I told them I'll be back tonight."

Rick nodded and led the way towards the restaurant where they slept two days before. They had locked the door with a padlock when they had left, so there weren't any walkers inside. They entered the building and settled around a table, with Michonne staying near the door to keep an eye outside.

"How's Daryl doing?" Glenn asked, worried.

"Better…Good thing that you let me go because when I returned, he wasn't doing very well."

"What was wrong with him?" Hershel demanded.

"Blood infection…I told them to keep an eye on him, but they didn't really care. He didn't get medicine when he should have nor did they clean his wounds or realise that he was burning up," Samantha explained. "But don't worry; he's better now…He even ate before I left…"

"That's a good sign," the old man agreed, nodding.

"And did you find out anything about your uncle?" Tyreese questioned.

"Yea…He told me that he wants Rick and Michonne…He said that he wanted to torture and kill Michonne and Daryl in front of Rick, and kill him as well when it's done."

Rick straightened at Samantha's confession while Michonne momentarily turned her attention to the group around the table.

"I always thought that the Governor was a wonderful man…" Glenn said, rolling his eyes.

"Something else?" Rick demanded, his voice quivering. He knew he wouldn't like what his enemy had in mind, but the idea that someone wanted to make his friends suffer was difficult to hear.

"He'll wait until you're the one who come to him…But if it's too long, he said he'll begin Daryl's torture anyways."

"So we don't have much time," Rick pointed out. "We have to find a plan now…Do you think you can help us?"

Samantha nodded and Glenn unfolded a piece of paper and put in on the table. It was the map that had been drawn up after he, Michonne, and Tyreese found the Governor's place. The blond woman helped him to add a few things that were missing and when it was done, she told them what every building was used for.

"This…It's the blue house where Daryl is being kept," she explained, pointing at a square on the drawing. "It's also where Philip and I live."

"It's in the middle of the camp…It's gonna be hard to reach the house without being seen…" Maggie noted.

"Do you think it's possible to find a way to move Daryl closer to the fences, like over there?" Rick asked, pointing to an area on the map.

"Mmm…Maybe…I'll think about something," Samantha said.

* * *

Daryl woke up when he felt a hand pressing lightly on his forehead. He opened his eyes and saw that Samantha was sitting on the bed next to his chest.

"I'm sorry, I had to wake you up…How do you feel?" she asked, removing her hand.

"Good…the pain's not so bad and I'm not dizzy anymore."

"I'm glad…" she said, smiling. "It means you don't need your IV anymore," she added, reaching to Daryl's left hand and slowly removing the adhesive tape that was keeping the needle in place. She pulled the needle out as well and covered the small hole with a band-aid. "Now, I need to tell you something, but you have to keep your voice down…"

Daryl nodded. He wondered what was going on and if Samantha had spoken with Rick.

"I talked to your friends…And Rick has plan."

"They're going to get themselves killed…" Daryl murmured, shaking his head.

"Well, apparently they don't care because they'll do everything they can to save you," the blonde admitted, sighing. "So, this is the plan…"

* * *

Rick and the group had spent the night in an old motel next to the restaurant. Samantha had told them that it had been cleared and that it was a decent place to get some rest. When the first rays of sunlight appeared in the sky, they were ready to move and drive to the Governor's location. They stopped the cars at the same place that Glenn, Michonne, and Tyreese had done a few days before. They got out and grabbed as many weapons as they could carry with them.

"Be safe," Hershel said, squeezing Rick's shoulder. The old man couldn't go with them, but they had brought him to take care of Daryl if he needed any medical attention. In the meantime, he would wait by the cars with their medical supplies.

"If we're not back tomorrow, return to the prison," the sheriff advised, hoping it wouldn't happen. "Keep everyone safe…"

"Rick, I'm sure everything is going to be fine…"

Rick nodded and walked away to join the others who were waiting near the trail. Maggie hugged her father and headed to the forest after Rick. They then made their last goodbye and disappeared in the woods.

About thirty minutes later, the rescue group arrived at the edge of the field where they could have a good view at the whole area. They got down to stay hidden. Michonne and Glenn looked with the binoculars and counted six armed men walking around the perimeters of the fences. The place seemed quiet without anyone else moving around.

"There…that's the shed that Samantha was talking about," Maggie said, looking at a small building in the back.

"Yea, we should move to the other side," Rick proposed, standing up. "Come on…"

The sheriff led the way on a trail making them go deeper into the forest.

* * *

Daryl was awake for a while when he heard the door being unlocked. Samantha entered the room and walked next to the bed.

"How are you doing?" she asked, checking his pulse.

"Good…I have a light headache, but I think it's just because I'm thirsty."

Samantha gave him his meds and made him drink a few sips of water. Daryl thought that she looked a bit distant. A few minutes later she was looking at his wounds when the door opened and the Governor came in.

"It looks like you're doing better," the man said, with his usual smile.

"It's a good thing, ain't it?" Daryl replied, feeling the need to act like a smart ass. "You must be very happy since you're my savior."

"Yea, it's good news…But you didn't suffer as much as I wanted to," he said somewhat disappointed.

"Sorry about that…I guess I'm stronger than you thought."

"Or maybe it's because Samantha took really good care of you," Philip suggested, walking closer to his niece and wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

"Yea, you can say that she's good with this shit," Daryl agreed, looking at her.

"Speaking about her, do you know what she told me?"

The redneck shrugged; he didn't know what the Governor had in mind but he guessed he would know it very soon.

"She met Rick and your little friends and they talked about coming here to save you," Philip explained, looking really pleased with himself. "It looks like they thought she was on your side," he added, grinning.

"What? Samantha? You told him?!" Daryl asked in disbelieve. He began pulling on his bonds out of frustration and anger.

"Sorry Daryl, but he's my uncle… my family…" the blonde said a bit shyly. "He told me what you and your brother did to Woodbury…"

"It's bull shit!" the redneck yelled, furious. " I told you he was lying…He's the one who killed all those people…and you said you believe me…"

"I had doubts, it's true…But I know now you're the liar and the manipulator."

"You're just a stupid bitch! You have no idea of what you're talking about!" roared Daryl, thrashing in the bed.

Suddenly, Philip took a step forward and punched him hard on the side of the face, making him groan in pain.

"How dare you talking to her like that?" the Governor spat, grabbing at his hair and pulling on it to make him look at him. "She took care of you since we found you and she even did things to save you that I didn't authorize. And you think you can disrespect her like that…"

Philip was livid. He let go of Daryl's hair and removed the sheet from his body. The hunter was wondering what he was doing when he punched him on the side where he was injured.

"Arhhhhhhhhhh…asshole!" Daryl yelled in pain, his body curling around the injury.

"Okay…that's it…I've had enough," the Governor shouted, leaving the room quickly.

Daryl looked at Samantha with pleading eyes, but she turned her head away. He wanted to talk to her, but Philip was back with Martinez who was holding grey duct tape in his hands.

"We're going to take off his bonds and tie him up with the tape," the Governor explained removing the strap on the left side while Martinez was taking care of the other one. "Just be careful, I don't know if he has his strenght back…"

Daryl was struggling as much as possible when he felt the ties around his wrists being loosened. He succeeded at freeing one of his hand, but when he tried to punch Martinez, he found out quickly that he didn't have any strenght left. He was easily overpowered by the two other men who, despite his whines of pain, hit him a few times again and tied his hands up with the tape. When the Governor and Martinez were sure that they still had Daryl under control, they pulled him up on his feet and dragged him out of the house.

As soon as Daryl was outside, he shivered. He was still wearing only his boxers and was barefooted. It was the beginning of the winter and the air and the ground were really cold. His injured leg was hurting him a lot, and he wasn't able to match the other men's pace despite trying his hardest.

"Let me go," he yelled, struggling against their hands.

"Shut up!" the Governor hissed, letting go of Daryl's arm.

Martinez let go of him as well, making Daryl fall to his back on the ground. Philip got closer and kicked him his wounds several times. It didn't take long before the bandages were soaked with blood. When the redneck was doubled over in pain, the other men pulled him up again and dragged him until they entered a white shed about thirty meters away from the house. Once they were inside, Daryl found out that it wasn't a normal shed; it was more like the Governor's office. There were a large table in the middle of the space with four chairs around it and a desk with several books near the wall. There was also another chair in the back with different straps on it making it looked like an electric chair. Daryl was sure they were going to make him sit on it but was surprised when they took him to the opposite wall where there was a hook hanging from the ceiling.

"Hold him a sec," Philip told Martinez, letting go of the redneck and going to grab something from a workbench. He came back with a rope and something that looked like a barbed wire.

"Hold his hands in front of him," the Governor said, releasing the rope and rolling out the wire.

Daryl knew exactly what Philip was going to do, so he tried to back away, but Martinez was behind him and was holding him firmly. Even if he was struggling, he couldn't go anywhere. The governor wrapped the wire around Daryl's wrists and tighened it as much as possible. The barbs passed the tape easily and pierced the redneck's skin making him cry in pain. When Philip thought that Daryl's hands were well tied, he signaled to Martinez to move him under the hook. The Governor grabbed the rope from the floor and attached it around the tape and the wire between Daryl's wrists. He took the other end of the rope and knoted it around the hook. When it was done, he walked to the wall and pulled on another rope.

At first, Daryl didn't know what the man was doing, but when he felt his arms being pulled up over him, he understood. A moment later, he was only standing on his naked toes. Being streched out like that increased the pain in his wounds and the feeling of the barbs in his wrists was almost unbearable.

"Son of a bitch…You're fucking gonna pay for this…" Daryl managed to yell between moans.

The Governor smiled and shook his head, before going to grab something else from the workbench. He came back with a piece of dirty fabric and walked behind the redneck. He shoved the middle of it between Daryl's lips, muffling his words, and knoted the two ends together behind his head.

"That's better," Philip said, coming back in front of the redneck and patting his cheek gently.

The feel of the gag in his mouth and the taste of the cloth were making Daryl nauseous. He had to stay in control and breath through his nose if he didn't want to throw up.

"I'm going to make you wait here a moment," the Governor said with his usual smile, heading to the door, with Martinez following. "When I'm back, the real fun will begin," he added, leaving the shed and closing the door.

Weak, cold, and despondent, Daryl sighed and looked at his feet. He could see a small pool of blood slowly forming under him. At this moment, he realised that blood was leaking out of his wounds and running down his arms and legs. Daryl knew he couldn't go anywhere and he couldn't do anything to escape. The thought that Rick and his friends would be attempting to save him tormented Daryl. He didn't want any of them to die on his behalf. Daryl was left alone to hang with his thoughts. He wondered how long he would be able to tolerate the pain before passing out and how long he had left before joining his brother.

* * *

**I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**I won't be able to post for a while because I'm going to be in Hawaii for 3 weeks. I'll update when I'll be back.**


	8. Chapter 7

**************************I'm back from my trip and I'm ready to work on that fic again. So there's the new chapter. I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**

**Chapter 7**

Rick and Michonne were watching the armed men from the edge of the woods when movement coming from the blue house caught their attention. The door had been opened, and after a moment, Samantha got out with something in her hands. She ran to the other side of the house, disappearing from their sight.

"Something's wrong…" Michonne whispered, keeping her eyes on the house.

"Just give her more time," Rick said, hoping he was right.

About two minutes later, the door opened again and three people appeared in the door way.

"It's Daryl," Michonne observed, looking at the others who were watching as well but without the binoculars. "He's with the Governor and Martinez."

"Fuck…It doesn't look like he's in good shape," Rick noted when he saw the redneck falling on the ground. He just wanted to run to him but he knew that was not the right time.

They were all watching Daryl being hit and dragged by the two men when they heard a light whistle coming from another direction. They spotted Samantha hiding behind a warehouse and beckoning them to come while looking around her.

"Come on," Rick said, standing up. He kept an eye on the armed men who seemed to be interested in something on the other side of the field.

Rick, Michonne, and Tyreese hurried up and arrived near the fence, while Maggie and Glenn waited at the edge of the field in case something went wrong. Samantha, who was standing just on the other side, unlocked a small gate and let them in. When the door was closed, they ran inside the warehouse.

"There, Daryl's clothes," she said, giving a bag to Rick, "and his knife."

"I thought you said that he was doing well," the sheriff told her, upset. "It didn't look like he was okay…He was covered with blood."

"Sorry about that…Didn't know that Philip would be so furious…But we don't have time for this, you need to get him out of here."

Rick nodded; he knew she was right.

"They took him into the white shed, just like I thought they would," Samantha explained. "But I don't know what Philip's going to do next. And his men will find out soon enough that there was nothing in the woods; that it was a false alarm."

"Good, we'll take it from here," Rick said, looking at Michonne and Tyreese. "We need to move fast and quietly. Don't hesitate to fire if needed, but only if you don't have a choice. Our priorities are Daryl, but if something happens, try to stay alive."

"Good luck," Samantha wished them before leaving the building.

They were going to sneak out as well when they heard voices, hers and someone else's, stopping them in their tracks. They waited until she said to her interlocutor that she was looking for her uncle and heard her moving away. Michonne checked outside to be sure it was safe. When she found out that no one else was around, Rick and Tyreese followed her outside and ran behind the white shed. They heard the Governor saying something about having fun and closing the door. Tyreese looked around from the corner of the shed, and saw him walking away, laughing with Martinez.

"They're gone," the black man said when the two men entered the blue house.

Rick nodded, and led the way along the walls of the shed. When they were at the front, the sheriff told them to stay on watch outside while he would go in after Daryl. Opening the door, Rick hoped he wouldn't have a bad surprise.

Trying to forget the pain, Daryl wanted to occupy his mind with something other than the Governor's torture when he heard noises coming from the door. The Governor had left only a few minutes ago, and even if he had said that he would be back, Daryl never thought it would be so soon. He was used to be beaten, but he was so weak that he didn't know if he would be able to take a lot of what Philip had planned for him. So when the door opened and Rick entered the shed, Daryl released the breath he didn't realise he was holding.

"Rick…." he tried to say, but his words where muffled by the gag in his mouth.

"Hey man," the sheriff said, forcing a smile. Now that he was in front of Daryl he found out that his state was worse than he thought; blood was running down his arms, the side of his face was swollen, along with a scratch above his eyebrow lined with dry blood. The right side of his body, from his hip to his toes was covered with fresh blood; the bandage on his hip and leg was dark red and half pulled away. Daryl was shaking both from the cold and his injuries, and was as pale as a ghost. Rick was really worried about him and hoped he would be able to get him out of there in time. "It's okay, we're gonna get you home," he whispered and began to approach Daryl.

Daryl nodded and closed his eyes; he wanted to save as much strength as possible and he didn't have a lot left.

Rick walked closer to his friend, removed the gag, and looked around to find a way to separate his bonds from the hook. He saw the rope and followed it to the wall and untied it from another hook. He loosened it slowly, but as soon as Daryl's feet touched the ground, they couldn't hold his weight and he fell on his injured side.

"Fuck," Daryl cursed, bending over in pain.

Rick ran to him and wanted to help him stand up, but when he touched his bare arm, he noted that the redneck was completely frozen.

"I have your clothes," the sheriff said, grabbing the bag he had dropped a few feet away and taking the boots, pants, and shirt from it.

"Forget the clothes, just untie me," Daryl almost pleaded, raising his hands in front of his friend. He was shivering so much that his teeth were chattering, but he didn't care; he just wanted to have his hands free and got rid of the wire that was holding them.

Rick nodded and was going to untie him with his knife, but found out that it wasn't just duct tape like he had thought first. He glanced at Daryl who was already biting at his bottom lip, knowing it would hurt and found the end of the wire and began rolling it out of the man's wrists. It wasn't an easy task because it was stuck in the tape and in Daryl's flesh, making him moan in pain at each move Rick was doing.

"I'm sorry," apologized Rick.

"Don't…just get me out of it," the redneck hissed, impatient. He wasn't angry at Rick; he was furious about what the Governor had done to him; making him became a victim like when he was a kid.

It took Rick a while to remove the barbed wire completely and when he was done, he cut the tape with his knife. But as soon as the tape was gone, the sheriff realised too late it wasn't a good idea; more blood was running out of the tiny wounds made by the barbs.

"I'm fine," Daryl tried to assure him when he saw the worried look on Rick's face.

But the sheriff didn't believe that, so he walked to the workbench and found a roll of tape. He came back to Daryl and grabbed one of his hands. Rick was glad that the redneck didn't fight him; he just let him wrapped the tape around his injured wrists.

Rick was helping Daryl getting dressed when Tyreese entered the shed in panic.

"They know we're here," he said, taking his breath.

At the same time, they heard gunshots coming from outside, proving Tyreese's information.

"Can you walk?" Rick asked Daryl when he finished putting his boots on.

"Yea…"

The sheriff nodded, but as soon as the redneck was standing, he had to catch him to prevent him from falling again.

"Ty…Help me," Rick said, passing his arm under Daryl's to keep him up.

Tyreese went to the other side and copied the sheriff. They were going to open the door when Michonne stormed in, a few drops of blood on her face.

"Glenn and Maggie put a few down and I just killed one…But still no sign of the Governor and Martinez," she explained, wiping her face with the back of her hand. "Hey Daryl," she added, glancing at the injured man.

"Tyreese, take Daryl out of here…Michonne and I will cover you," Rick called, letting go of the redneck and walking to the door. "Go back to where we came from."

When he was sure that Michonne and Tyreese knew what to do, Rick opened the door. As soon as they were outside, bullets were shot in their direction. Michonne and the sheriff used their weapons to return fire and cover Tyreese and Daryl were heading to hide behind the warehouse, a few meters away from the small gate.

"Wait…need a minute," Daryl said, his breathing short, stopping when they arrived behind the warehouse.

Tyreese nodded and kept looking around, gun in hand in case someone was attacking them. Michonne and Rick joined them a few seconds later.

"We have to move," Michonne said, glancing at Daryl who was still catching his breath. "The Governor is in a truck. We have to reach the forest if we want to have a chance."

Rick took off toward the gate and opened it. When he was sure it was clear, he motioned them to come. Michonne went out first, followed by Tyreese, who was still helping Daryl, and Rick ran behind them. Michonne had to put a few walkers down that had been attracted by the sounds of the gunshots. They were in the middle of the field, about half way through, when they heard the sound of an engine coming toward them.

"Fuck…It's them!" Tyreese let out, trying to increase his speed without letting slip Daryl, who had difficulties with keeping the pace.

A truck appeared at the edge of the field and was heading toward them at high speed. Rick stopped to fire his gun a few times and let out a sigh of relief when one of the bullets hit one of the tires, making the driver lose control of the vehicle and pulled over not too far away from them.

Rick quickly joined Michonne, Tyreese, and Daryl when the redneck, out of strength dropped to the ground about ten meters away from the edge of the woods.

"Come on, man…" Tyreese encouraged, trying to pull him up. He bent down and realised that Daryl had passed out. "Rick! He's out…Help me…"

The sheriff grabbed one of Daryl's arms while Tyreese took the other one. They dragged him until they slipped into the woods and leaned his back against a tree. Rick knelt in front of him and checked his pulse.

"They are right behind us," Michonne informed them, keeping an eye on the four shadows heading in their direction. "How is he?"

"He's gonna be fine for now…But we need to split up," Rick suggested, standing quickly and looking about..

"What about him?" Tyreese asked, motioning towards the unconscious man.

"We'll have a better chance if we leave him here out of sight," the sheriff explained, grabbing at Daryl's shirt and laying him on the ground under the bushes. He took the hunter's knife from his own belt and put it next to the injured man. "We'll come back for him when we know it's safe…"

Even if they were all worried about leaving the redneck behind, they knew they didn't have another choice. They just hoped that he wouldn't be discovered by walkers. So the three of them agreed to leave him there and parted ways, following three different trails.

Rick was running for a while when he decided to stop and to see if he was being followed. He waited a moment and listened carefully. Suddenly, he heard footsteps not far away from him. He leaned his body against a tree, trying to make himself disappeared into the shadow. He could tell that someone was getting close because he was able to hear a calm breathing getting louder.

"Did you find them?" the Governor asked, making Rick's heart jump in his chest. He realised that the other man was about two meters away from him, standing just the other side of the tree.

"I'm following one of them," Martinez answered after a moment. His voice sounded like he was far away and wasn't really clear. It took a few seconds to Rick to understand that Philip was using a walkie-talkie. "It's gonna be an easy target."

"Good…Keep Rick, Daryl, and Michonne alive…Kill the others."

After about a minute, he heard the Governor walking away. When he didn't hear any more noises, he moved away from the tree and stepped back on the trail. He walked as slowly and as quietly as possible, his python in hand, ready to shoot. After a while without hearing any suspicious noises, he reached a clearing where he was startled by the sound of a dry branch being broken behind him. At that moment, he knew he wasn't alone anymore.

"Hello Rick," Philip said when he saw the other man turning around to face him. "You came by my home and don't even take a few minutes to say 'hi'…"

"Sorry, I was kind of busy saving one of my men from an asshole," Rick replied, pointing his gun toward the other man.

"Now, easy officer, we don't want you to do something stupid, do we?" the Governor retorted raising his hands in defence in front of him.

Rick was wondering why his enemy would surrender so easily when he felt a cold object pushing at the back of his neck. He quickly realised that someone was pointing a gun at him.

"Drop your gun, Rick," Philip ordered, walking closer.

"Don't move!" the sheriff yelled, keeping his python pointed toward the other man's face. He saw him nodding and felt a sharp pain at the back of his head, making him fell on the ground, dropping his gun in the process.

"Really, that's it, sheriff!? That's all you got?" the Governor said, laughing lightly. "I'm a bit disappointed, Rick…I wanted to torture Dixon and Michonne in front of you before killing you, but it seems like I will kill you first. And when I'm be done with you, I'll take care of them, making sure they suffer as long as possible. I just hope that Daryl is still alive; I was just beginning his private treatment when you arrived and ended the party!"

"Son of a bitch!" Rick spat, kneeling on the ground and trying to find his gun.

"Is it what you're looking for?" Philip asked, taking the python from the man standing behind the sheriff and showing it to his owner. "I think it could be a good idea to use it on you…"

Rick saw the Governor pointing his own gun at him and putting his finger on the trigger. At that moment, he was just hoping that his death would give a chance to his friends to buy some time to get away without being hurt.

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	9. Chapter 8

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**Chapter 8**

Daryl felt something brush against his face and he tried to move it away. When he couldn't get rid of it, he opened his eyes and found that he was lying on the ground with branches and dry leaves covering his face. He didn't understand what he was doing there and couldn't remember where he was. He wanted to sit up, but a sharp pain made him stop. After a moment, when the pain had faded a little, he rolled over on his good side and managed to sit up. First, he looked at himself and remembered that the Governor had beaten him and left him tied up in a shed. He glanced around him and saw the fences surrounding several buildings hundred meters away between the bushes.

Daryl took a moment to recall what happened and remembered Rick and the others; the gunshots and their run in the field. After that there was nothing so he guessed quickly that he had probably passed out and been hidden there by his friends. With the help of a tree, Daryl pulled himself up and leaned his back against it to catch his breath and think about his next move. He had no idea where his friends were and he didn't know if the Governor and his men were still around. Fortunately he did have some light left from the sinking sun and it was just enough for him to put his tracking skills to use.

Daryl was about to go look for a trail when a grunt made his heart skip a beat. He turned quickly around and spotted a walker, a woman in a dirty bathrobe, a few feet away heading toward him. He reached instinctively for his knife at his belt, but remembered that he was unarmed when Rick rescued him. He searched around him to find something he could use and, looking at the ground, he distinguished a shining object under the dead leaves. He kicked the leaves away and realised it was _his_ knife. He didn't know how it got there but it wasn't the moment to question it; the walker was less than a meter away from him. So, forgetting the pain, Daryl dropped on his knees and grabbed the knife. He barely had the time to turn around, push the dead woman to the ground, and then stab her in one of her eyes. When he was certain she wasn't moving anymore, he withdrew his knife and sat beside her, his breath short. He was so exhausted that he just wanted to lay down and forget about everything. But Daryl knew he had to find his friends and make sure they were safe. They had come to rescue him, he couldn't let them down.

Taking a deep breath and using the strength he didn't know he had left, Daryl stood up and wiped his bloody knife on his pants before putting it in the sheath attached to his belt. Limping, he took a few steps and looked at the ground around him, searching for a trail. About a minute later, he noticed different clues that made him guessing that his friends got separated. One of the trails made him think that more than one person had used it: he supposed that Rick, Michonne, or Tyreese had been followed. With this impression in head, Daryl decided to take that one, hoping he would reach them in time.

He was walking for less than five minute when he heard footsteps not too far away from him. Without hesitation, he hid behind a tree and waited until the sound got closer. A moment later, Martinez passed at his right side, a gun in hand, without seeing him. Daryl moved quickly and jumped on the other man's back, making him fall on the ground and dropping his weapon. Without giving him the time to react, the redneck removed his knife from his belt and pressed it against the man's neck.

"Don't fucking move or I slice your throat," he warned in a murmured, uncertain voice, unsure if Martinez was alone or not.

The Hispanic man did as he was told and laid immobile under Daryl. He didn't try to reach for his gun and didn't struggle to throw the other man away from him.

"Are you alone?" the redneck demanded, keeping a pressure on the other man skin with his knife. "Where're Rick and the others?" he asked again after the other man had nodded.

"Don't know…Philip told us to part ways so we can find you all."

At this moment, they heard a static noise coming from under Martinez, followed by the Governor's voice.

"It's my radio…" the Hispanic man explained when Daryl pushed his knife deeper in his skin.

"Pick it up and tell him you're following one of us," the hunter ordered, moving his hand in a way that the blade was now pointed toward Martinez's throat.

Martinez shifted his body carefully and grabbed the walkie-talkie from his belt. He moved it close to his face and pushed on the button.

"I'm following one of them," he lied, glancing toward Daryl who was still straddling his back. "It's...it's gonna be an easy target."

After Philip had replied to his man, the redneck grabbed the radio and hung it on his belt. He took the gun that had dropped next to them and stood up. But as soon as he was on his feet, Daryl felt his blood leaving his head and got dizzy. Groaning, he quickly leaned against the closest tree to prevent him from falling.

"Are you okay, man? You are really pale."

The redneck glanced in front of him and saw Martinez standing next to him, a worried look on his face. He was surprised to see him staying there still. He didn't even try to take his gun or his radio back.

"What are...what are you doing?" Daryl questioned him between two short breathes. He wasn't in a state to fight at this moment and thought that Martinez, aware of his situation, would take the opportunity to overpower him.

"What? You wanna know why I don't beat you up and take my gun back?" the Hispanic man responded, his arms on his chest.

Daryl looked suspiciously at the other man and nodded; he wanted to understand.

"I've had enough of his shit!" Martinez confessed, shaking his head. "Philip's gone completely crazy since Woodbury…I joined him to survive, not to destroy every human being!"

Daryl was skeptical and his eyes narrowed to slits. "So…you quit?"

"Yea…you can even kill me if you want…But don't miss my head; I don't want to turn into those things…"

"But why you didn't help me when I was chained to the bed or when I was in the shed?" Daryl asked, slowly sitting down. He was still feeling dizzy and decided Martinez wasn't much of a threat anymore.

"I hate what he became and I want to leave his crew…Doesn't mean I want him to kill me," Martinez explained, walking closer to Daryl to help him, but he changed his mind before he reached him. "Philip won't mind killing everyone one who betrays him…"

The redneck nodded; he knew the Governor was that kind of man. "_An arrogant and unforgiving asshole_," he thought.

"Where's Samantha?" Daryl demanded, suddenly realising that she had betrayed her uncle as well.

"Don't worry, she's fine…She's probably gone by now."

Daryl stayed silent and relaxed a moment. He was thinking about his next move. He knew he couldn't stay there in the middle of the woods even if every part of his body was begging him to do so. He had to make sure his friends were alive and he had the urge to find the Governor and end his worthless life. But he wasn't in the shape to do it by himself. The hundred meters he had covered and his small fight with Martinez had drained him out of all the energy he had. Daryl raised his head and looked at the other man. The Hispanic man had his hands in his pockets and was kicking a few stones, apparently waiting for Daryl's next move. The hunter wasn't sure if he could trust him, but he was his only chance to succeed. Anyway, he would be killed by the hands of the Governor or would die trying to kill him.

"Martinez!" the redneck said, to get the other man's attention. "Like you noticed, I'm not in the best shape…So, if what you just told me is true, I need your help…"

That was a weird feeling for Daryl to ask for help; he was always trying to do everything that had to be done by himself. It was even worse to ask a person he thought was his enemy. But he knew he had to get through this old habit if he wanted to find his friends.

"Okay, alright…What do you need me for?" Martinez asked, shrugging.

"I need to find Rick and the others…And I want to kill your boss…"

"Ex-boss…"

"Sorry…ex-boss," Daryl corrected, rolling his eyes. "I can pick up their trails, but I don't think I'll be able to walk by myself very far…"

"Keeping you up…Yea, I can do that."

"And I need a gun…"

"I have only one...and you took it," Martinez pointed out, looking at the weapon in Daryl's hand.

"Okay, so I keep it," the redneck concluded, fitting the gun in his belt.

The Hispanic man opened his mouth like he was going to argue, but changed his mind.

After a moment, when Daryl thought that he was ready, Martinez came closer and helped him stand. The redneck got back on the trail and even walked a few minutes. But when they reached the bottom of a hill, Daryl knew he couldn't make it by himself. So the other man went to stand on his injured side and wrapped an arm around his waist, while the redneck put his arm over Martinez's shoulders. It took them a while to climb the small mount and when they reached the top, Daryl needed to stop for a few minutes. At this moment, he wished he had water and pain killers, because he was thirsty; his entire body was aching and his head was throbbing. Taking deep breathes to control the pain, the hunter sat on a trunk and took the opportunity of being elevated to have a good look at their surroundings. It was getting darker, but Daryl could still distinguish the shape of the trees.

The redneck was going to ask Martinez to help him stand up when he caught movement between the trees. Looking with more caution, he could discern three body shapes: the first two higher than the third one.

"There," Daryl whispered, pointing the three figures out to the Hispanic man.

Martinez nodded and helped the redneck to his feet.

"We need to get closer…But if you turn on me, Martinez, I'm the one with the gun…I won't hesitate to shoot you before killing them as well."

"Won't happen," said Martinez, meeting Daryl's eye. Daryl nodded and together they started off. They slowly reached the bottom of the hill and walked as quietly as possible. When they got closer, they had a good view of the three people. The first was the Governor. The second was a man in his thirties dressed as a soldier. The third was Rick who was kneeling on the ground with the soldier's gun pointed at his head.

About twenty meters away from them, Daryl made Martinez stop and hide behind a big tree. He grabbed the gun from his belt and got ready to shoot if needed.

"I don't think they know we're here," Daryl said, letting go of Martinez. "You can stay hidden if you want; I think I can manage the last bit by myself."

"Fine…I'm better if I stay out of this. But be careful…"

The redneck nodded and made his way toward Rick and the two men. It wasn't easy, because with each step, Daryl's legs felt like they were going to soften under his weight. He managed to reach the last tree at the edge of the clearing when he couldn't bear the pain anymore; he collapsed on the ground. The sound made by the dry branches and leaves being crushed under his body alarmed the three other men, catching their attention.

"Fuck," Daryl cursed, crawling as fast as possible to hide behind a tree trunk.

"Keep an eye on him," he heard the Governor ordering, followed by footstep heading in his direction.

The redneck knew that he would be discovered very soon, but even if he wanted to shoot the man who was coming to him, he was scared that the soldier could decide to kill Rick. Remembering that Philip wanted to torture him while Rick was forced to be the spectator, he guessed that his best chance was to pretend he was unconscious. He supposed that the Governor would drag him close to his friend, giving him a better shot on the soldier and the one eyed man. So Daryl hid Martinez's gun in the back of his pants and grabbed his knife. When he knew that Philip was next to him, he closed his eyes and tried to stay limp.

"Look who's here!" the Governor said, laughing. "Rick, Dixon had decided to join the party!"

Daryl felt the other man bending over him and a hand checking his pulse.

"Well, it looks like he's already in a bad shape…"

Suddenly, the hunter felt a hand squeezing around his throat, choking him. At this moment, he wasn't sure about his plan anymore.

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**************************I would like to know what you think. So please, don't be shy and leave me a comment!**


End file.

Walking Dead, Angst, Drama